Valve



1,634 722 July 5, 1927- s. J. NORDSTROM VALVE Filed June 12. 1926Fatented July 5, 1927.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SVEN JOHAN NORDSTROM, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR TO MERCONOBDSTROM VALVE COMPANY, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, A CORPORATION OFDELAWARE.

Application filed June 12, 1926.

- able valve, it has been proposed that this principle be applied toplug valves of the cheapest and lightest construction, such'as are usedfor gas and similar service. One of the requirements of this kind ofservice is that the. valve be sealed so as to be nonleakable. To preventthe valve from leaking it has been necessary to lap or grind carefullythe hearing or seating surfaces between the plug and its seat. This, ofcourse, adds to the cost of the valve.

One object of the present invention is to incorporate the pressurelubrication principle in plug valves of the very cheapest and lightestconstruction so that these valves may be manufactured even more cheaplythan heretofore and yet be properly lubricated and sealed. Anotherobject of the invention is to arrange the lubrication system of thevalve in such manner that the plug may be turned completely roundin itsseat, that is, through an angle of 360, without exposing the lubricantunder pressure to the fluid passing through the valve. A more specificobject of the invention is to provide a plug valve ofthis type with asystem of lubricating grooves of such arrangement that when the plug isin closed position the grooves on each side of the passageway throughthe valve seat cooperate to constitute a continuous groove completelysurrounding the passageway which may be 'filled with lubricant underpressure to prevent leakage past the plug. To the accomplishment ofthese objects the invention consists in the improved plug valve morefully described hereinafter and particularly pointed out in the appendedclaims.

In the accompanying drawings illustrat- VALVE.

'duce the cost of manufacture.

museum ing the preferred form of the invention, Fig. 1 is a longitudinalsection through the improved valve, with the plug in closed position;Fig. 2 is a transverse section taken across the valve shown in Fig. 1;Fig. 3Jis. a section taken along the line. 3 3 ofFig.

10 having a longitudinal passageway 11 therethrough and a tapered valveseat 12 formed transversely of the passageway 11. Seated in the taperedvalve seat 12 is a tapered plug 14 having a hole 15 adapted to registerwith the passageway 11 when the valve is open, as shown in Fig. 3. Theseparts are formed as usual, but it will be observed from a considerationof the li res that the plug and the casing are o thei lightest andcheapest construction. The side walls 16 of the casing are made asthinas practicable, and the plug 14 is hollowed out leaving only therelatively thin concentric walls 17 in its middle part. The longitudinalrecesses 23 in the valve seat 12 facilitate reaming the valve seat andso re- The parts are formed in this manner by casting.

. The tapered valve seat 12 extends entirely through the casing 10. Theplug 14 is held in the valve seat by means of a collar 18 and a'nut 19.The collar 18 bears against acircumferential flange 20 formed on oneside of the casing and the nut 19 is threaded onto a stem 21 projectingfrom the smaller end of the plug. The larger end 22 of the plug closesthe larger end of the tapered opening through the casing. Projectingoutwardly from the larger end of the plug is a valve stem 24 flattenedto accommodate a wrench by Which the plug may be manipulated to open andclose the valve. It will be observed that this arrangement of parts andthe means for holding the plug against its seat is of the sim lest, andis correspondingly cheap to pro uce. Usually the plug 14 is lapped orground into its seat in order to make a tight joint between them.According to the present invention the necessity for making a tightjoint by protracted other.

The means provided by the present inven tion for lubricating the contactjoint between the plug and the valve seat and for sealing this joint andthe passageway through the casing, .when the plug is turned-to closedposition, as shown in Fig. 1, comprises a plurality of longitudinallyarranged lubrh eating grooves 25 formed longitudinally in the bearingsurface of the valve seat 12. These grooves are V-shaped in crosssection and are preferably cast in the casing to save the cost ofmachining. In the illustrated embodiment of the improved valve there arefour longitudinal grooves 25 spaced substantially 90 apart. -Each grooveis located adjacent to one of the lateral sides of the passageway 11through the valve seat. two longitudinal grooves at either the inlet oroutlet side of the passageway constitute what is hereinafter'termed apair of longitudinal grooves. The upper and lower ends of the grooves 25extend above and below the upper side 26 and the lower side 27,respectively, of the passageway 11. (The use of the terms upper andlower with respect to various parts of the valve is understood to berelative only and refers to thepos ition of the valve as shown in thedrawings.) F ormed in the bearing surface of the upper or larger end ofthe plug and on opposite sides thereof are two transverse lubrlcatinggrooves 30, each groove being substantially 90 in length. And in thebearing surface of the lower or smaller end 1 of the plug and onopposite sides thereof are two transverse lubricating grooves 31, each fgroove being substantially 90 in length. These two pairs of transversegrooves 30 and 31, although arcuate in longitudinal section, as shown inF i 5, are regarded as parallel with the hole 1'5through the plug. I

It will be observed by reference to Figs. 1 and 2 that the grooves 30are located above the plane passing through the upper edge 32 of thehole 15 and that the lower grooves 31 are located below the planepassing through the lower edge 33 of the hole 15. The upper edges34 ofthe grooves 30 are substantially in the same plane as the upper ends ofthe longitudinal grooves 25, and the The exposing a groove or grooves inwhich there is lubricant unde rpressure to the fluid passing through theline. the passageway through the casing by surrounding the passagewaywith continuous or closed circuit grooves filled with lubricant It ispossible to seal '1 under pressure when the plug is in closed position.And it is not necessary to accurately lap or grind inthe contact jointbetween the plug and the valve seat because the travel of the plug pastthe longitudinal grooves 25 causes the plug to take up lubricant andsmear it over the valve seat 12, thereby filling the irregularities ofthe incompletely machined surfaces, with the result that the bearingsurfaces are effectively lubricated.

When the valve is close with the plug turned so that the hole 15 isarranged transversely of the passageway 11 and the side 17 of the plugcloses the opening through the valve seat, the two upper transversegrooves 30 span the upper ends of the two pairs of longitudinal grooves25 and the lower grooves 31 span the lower ends of thelongitudinalgrooves 25, thus establishing around each end of the opening through thevalve seat a continuous groove adapted to be filled with lubricant underpressure. And on the other hand, when the valve is open with the plugturned so that the hole 15 is in alinement with the passageway 11, theupper transverse grooves 30 span and bring into communication the upperends of the two grooves 25 on each side of the casing, as shown in Fig.4, and the lower transverse grooves 31 span and bring into communicationthe lower ends of the two grooves 25 on each side of the casing, asclearly indicated in- F ig; 5. But in any intermediate position of theplug, the grooves 30 and 31 can be in effective communication with onlytwo diametrically disposed longitudinal grooves 25. The diametricallydisposed longitudinal grooves 25 with which the transverse grooves 30-and 31 are in communication While the plug is in its intermediatepositions are never exposed to the fluid passing through .the line,because the grooves 30 and 31 are arranged parallelly with the hole 15.The other diametrically disposed grooves 25, the two with which thegrooves 30 and 31 are not in communication,

are exposed to the fluid passing'through the I line. But since theselongitudinal grooves are out off from the transverse grooves at thistime, only the small amount of lubricant that is in the exposed groovescan pass into the line or be attacked by the fluid passing through thevalve. Thus by the present construction it is possible to stop the plugat any point in its 360 of rotation and put the lubricant in the groovesunder pressure without forcing any of the lubricant into the line. Andthere is no waste of lubricant, except the relatively small amount whichmay be dissolved or washed out of the exposed grooves.

The means forintroducing the lubricant under pressure into the groovescomprises a reservoir consisting of a hole 37 formed axially in thevalve stem 24 and a cored hole 38 formed transversely in the upper orlarger end of the plug 14 and connecting at its outer ends the twoopposite transverse grooves 30, as shown in Fig. 4. The hole 37 in thevalve stem 24 is threaded to receive a pressure screw 39 by which thelubricant in the various connected passageways and grooves is put underpressure.

Having thus described the invention what I claim as new is 1. A valvecomprising, a casing having a longitudinal passageway therethrough and atapered valve seat formed transversely of the passageway, a tapered plugseated in the valve seat and having a hole adapted to register with thepassageway, means for holding the plug against seat, the valve seatbeing provided with four longitudinal grooves spaced substantially 90apart extending above and below, respectively, the planes passingthrough the upper and lower sides of the assageway through' the valveseat, the bearing surface of the plug being provided at the larger endof the plug with two transverse grooves lying in the plane passingthrough the upper ends of the longitudinal grooves and at the smallerend of the plug with two transverse grooves lying in the plane passingthrough the lower ends of the longitudinal grooves, each pair oftransverse grooves being substantially 90 in length and arrangedparallel with the hole through the plug, the ends of each pair oftransverse grooves being spaced substantially 90 apart, a reservoir inthe plug for containing lubricant, connections between the reservoir andone pair of transverse grooves, and means for putting the lubricant inthe reservoir under pressure to force it 1nto the v grooves.

2. A valve comprising, a casing having a passageway therethrough and atapered valve seat formed transversely of the passageway, a tapered plugseated in the valve seat and having a hole adapted to register with'thepassageway, means for holding the plug against its seat, the valve seatbeing provided on each lateral side of the pas-' sageway therethroughwith a longitudinal groove extending at each end beyond the,

passageway, the seating surface of the plug being provided with atransverse groove on each side thereof above and below the planes of theupper and lower edges of the hole and parallel withthe hole, the upperpair of transverse grooves lying in the plane passing through the upperends of the longitudinal grooves and the lower pair of transversegrooves lying in the plane passingthrough the lower ends of thelongitudinal grooves, the transverse grooves bein long enough to spanand no more two'a' jacent longitudinal grooves when the plug is inclosed and in open position, a reservoir in the plug for containinglubricant connected with one pair of transverse I grooves, and means-forputting the lubricant under pressure to force it into the transverse andlongitudinal grooves.

3. A valve comprising, a casing having a passageway therethrough and atapered valve seat formed transversely of the passageway, a tapered plugseated in the valve seat and having a'hole adapted to register with thepassageway, longitudinal and transverse grooves in the seating surfaceof the valve arranged to form when the plug is in its open and closedpositions two diametrically opposed closed circuit grooves,

a reservoir for containing plastic substance,

connections between the reservoir and all the grooves when the plug isin its substantially full open and closed positions only,

and means for putting the plastic substance under pressure.

4. A valve comprising, 'a'casing having a passageway therethrough and atapered valve seat formed transversely of the pas sageway, a taperedplug seated in the valve seat and having a holeadapted'to register withthe passageway, longitudinal and transverse grooves in the seatingsurface of passageway therethrough and a tapered valve seat formedtransversely of the passageway, a tapered plug seated in the valve seatand havlng a hole adapted to register with the passageway,- longitudinaland rooves being so transverse grooves the seating surface of are onlsupplied with lubricant under presthe valve arranged to form acontlnuous sure w 18H they'are not exposed to the fluid groovesurrounding the hole and passagepassing through the valve, but are outoff 1 way when the plug is in closed position, and from the supply oflubricant under pressure means for introducing a plastic substance whenthey are exposed to the fluid passing under pressure into the grooves,the longithrough the valve.

tudinal grooves being 50 arranged that they SVEN J OHAN NORDSTROM.

